Grocery cart with inclined bottom having a front opening gate system



P 969 H. J. RUTTENBERG ETAL 3,437,176

GROCERY CART WITH INCLINED BOTTOM HAVING A FRONT sheetor 1o OPENING GATE SYSTEM Filed Jan. 17, 1967 INVENTORS #145010 1 .607 7271 5556 614K739 C1055 5W f M ATfU/E/VEYS BY midi A015 3,437,176 FRONT A ril 8, 1969 H. J. RUTTENBERG ETAL,

GROCERY CART WITH INCLINED BOTTOM HAVING A OPENING GATE SYSTEM Sheet 2 of 10 Filed Jan. 17, 1967 BY 634E717 C1056- z/ma Mi $14,

ATTOE/VZYS A ril 8, 19.69 H.J. RUTTENBERG ETAL 3 GROCERY CART WITH INCLINED BOTTOM HAVING A FRONT OPENING GATE SYSTEM Sheet 3 of 10 Fixed Jan. 17. 1967 INVENTORS m mv Ma m M 7 dz w mm Mn E A A B April 8, 1969 H. J. RUTTENBERG ETAL 3, 3

GROCERY CART WITH INCLINED BOTTOM HAVING A FRONT OPENING GATE SYSTEM Filed Jan. 17, 1967 Sheet 4 of 10 fiaz4 df- J INVENTORS 166450! J. lez/r 75/1/8556 3,437,176 RT WITH INCLINED BOTTOM HAVING A FRON April-8, 1969 H. J. RUTTENBERG ETAL GROCERY CA OPENING GATE SYSTEM Sheet Filed Jan. 17. 1967 m NQ Apnl 8, 1969 H. J. RUTTENBERG ETAL 3, 7 76 GROCERY CART WITH INCLINED BOTTOM HAVING A FRONT OPENING GATE SYSTEM Filed Jan. 17, 1967 Sheet 6 Of 10 lld BY GAE/A C1056 ATTOE/V'YS 3,437,176 GROCERY CART WITH INCLINE!) BOTTOM HAVING A FRONT H. J. RUTTENBERG ETAL A ril 8, 1969 Sheet OPENING GATE SYSTEM Filed Jan. 17, 1967 INVENTORS m E p Wd 5 v, fu M m e mm m 0 7 W A April 1969 H. J. RUTTENBERG ETAL 3,437,176

GROCERY CART WITH INCLINED BOTTOM HAVING A FRONT OPENING GATE SYSTEM Filed Jan. 17, 1967 Sheet 8 of 10 1 /5G a I ///7 "486 ATfO/E/V' Ya April 1969 H. J. RUTTENBERG ETAL 3, 37, 76

GROCERY CART WITH INCLINED BOTTOM HAVING A FRONT Sheet 9 of 10 OPENING GATE SYSTEM Filed Jan. 17, 1967 INVENTORS #716010 J EflffZ/VAZEG April 8, 969 H. J. RUTTENBERG ETAL 3,437,176

GROCERY CART WITH INCLINE!) BOTTOM HAVING A FRONT OPENING GATE SYSTEM 7 Filed Jan. 17, 1967 Sheet /0 of 10 6. Z] ak- /3 7/ A'TUE/VZYS United States Patent Office 3,437,176 Patented Apr. 8, 1969 US. Cl. 1861 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to an automatic cart unloading system utilizing a wheeled cart which has a substantially inclined bottom wall sloping downwardly toward the front of the cart and a frontwardly opening gate system. The shopping cart is designed to be used with a check stand having a substantially depressed zone therein and open at one end and a conveyor system is disposed in the depressed zone. The counter is further provided with means for holding a shopping cart against the open end of the check stand and with means for opening the gate on the shopping cart. Thus, when a cart is so held and its gate so opened the goods in the shopping cart will gravitationally slide out of the cart onto the conveyor system.

This invention relates to an automatic shopping cart unloading system, and more particularly, relates to a check stand for automatically unloading a shopping cart and to a shopping cart capable of being automatically unloaded.

it has long been recognized in the operation of retail establishments of the supermarket type that an important factor of profitable operation is the easy and rapid flow of both merchandise and customers therethrough. Accordingly, great efforts have in the past been made to promote such ease and rapidity of flow. The equipment supplied for such retail establishments and, in fact, the design of such establishments themselves have been directed toward this end. However, a serious bottleneck has continued to exist at the checkout stands and this has been the source of frequent and often irritating delays for the customer. Accordingly, equipment which will tend to speed the flow of customers and merchandise past the check stands will be advantageous.

Most of the equipment which has been designed to speed the flow of customers and merchandise past the check stands has involved the use of apparatus for aiding the customer in removing the merchandise from the shopping cart. This has involved the use of conveyor mechanisms mounted on the bottom of the basket of the shopping cart so that when the cart is engaged with the end of the check stand and the conveyor activated, the goods piled on top of the conveyor within the cart will be bodily transported through a gate system on the cart to the counter So that it may be checked by the cashier. Similar systems utilize a plow or the like mounted at the rear of the cart which has a plurality of cables or straps attached thereto and extending forwardly therefrom so that when the straps are pulled forwardly, the plow will push the goods in the cart out through a gate onto the counter enabling the cashier to check same. Still others have lifted the cart bodily to dump same onto the check stand. However, the system discussed above and those similar thereto involve a rather intricate and complicated shopping cart structure and/ or associated mechanism which is expensive to manufacture and is still not entirely satisfactory in operation. The cart structures in some of these tend to be too heavy and, therefore, too diflicult to be moved by the average shopper and others are too likely to damage the articles carried therein to be acceptable.

Accordingly, the objects of this invention are:

(1) To provide apparatus for use in retail establishments of the supermarket type which will tend to increase the speed and convenience of flow of both customers and merchandise therethrough.

(2) To provide apparatus, as aforesaid, which will tend to increase the rate of flow of customers and merchandise through the checkout portion of such establishments.

(3) To provide apparatus, as aforesaid, which will both assist and tend to urge the rapid unloading of shopping carts at the check stand portion of such retail establishments.

(4) To provide a shopping cart and means cooperating therewith at the checkout counter which will render easier, and tend to hasten, the unloading of such shopping carts.

'(5) To provide a shopping cart and auxiliary equipment cooperable therewith, as aforesaid, which is controlled by the cashier and used to urge a more rapid unloading of a shopping cart than a customer might otherwise carry out.

(6) To provide apparatus, as aforesaid, which will be of sufficiently simple design, both as to the shopping cart portion thereof and to the check stand, that its manner of operation will be obvious to users thereof whereby even the most nonmechanical shopper can use same effectively, either without instructions or in pursuance of only the most simple verbal instructions which can be given by the cashier at the checkout counter.

(7) To provide apparatus, as aforesaid, wherein the shopping cart is automatically unloaded at the checkout stand pursuant to a command given by the cashier.

(8) To provide apparatus, as aforesaid, wherein when the goods have been automatically unloaded, they will be transported to a position where they may be easily checked by the cashier.

(9) To provide apparatus for automatically unloading a shopping cart thereby eliminating the need for a customer to remove the goods from the shopping cart so that the customer may watch the cashier check the merchandiseto catch any errors that the cashier might make.

(10) To provide a shopping cart having a substantially inclined bottom such that when the front wall of the cart is opened pursuant to a command fromthe cashier, the merchandise in the cart will slide down the inclined bottom onto the conveyor system.

(11) To provide a check stand equipped with apparatus for unlatching a gate on a shopping cart thereby permitting the merchandise within the cart to slide by gravity out of the cart and the merchandise will do so without damage thereto.

(12) To provide apparatus, as aforesaid, wherein the goods are drawn from the cart in a coherent mass without any tumbling thereof.

Other objects and purposes of this invention will be apparent to persons acquainted with apparatus of this general type upon reading the following specification and inspecting the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a cart and check stand embodying the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a top view of the check stand.

FIGURE 3 is an end view of the check stand.

FIGURE 4 is a side view of the check stand partially sectioned.

FIGURE 5 is a side view of the cam which opens and closes the gate.

FIGURE 5A is a side view of the cam rotated 180 degrees.

FIGURE 6 is a top sectional view of the support arm for the latch-engaging plate.

FIGURE 7 is a top view of the cart holding device.

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of the shopping cart embodying the invention.

FIGURE 9 is a side elevational view of the cart.

FIGURE 10 is a front elevational view of the cart.

FIGURE 11 is a rear elevational view of the cart.

FIGURE 12 is a partial-sectional view of the baby seat taken along line XII-XII of FIGURE 11.

FIGURE 13 is a front view of the locking gate in the raised position.

FIGURE 14 is a front view of the locking gate in the unlocked and lowered position.

FIGURE 15 is a partial side view of the magnet in en gagement with the gate.

FIGURE 16 is a sectional view taken along line XVI- XVI of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 17 is a sectional view taken along XVII-XVII of FIGURE 16.

FIGURE 18 is a sectional view taken along XVIIIXVIII of FIGURE 17.

FIGURE 19 is a sectional view taken along XIXXIX of FIGURE 16.

FIGURE 20 is a schematic of the electrical circuit used in the system.

FIGURE 21 is a partial-sectional view taken along the center line of the cart and counter, the cart being spaced from the end of the counter prior to engagement therewith.

FIGURE 22 is a view similar to FIGURE 21 with the cart engaging the counter.

FIGURE 23 is a view similar to FIGURE 22 with the gate of the cart unlocked and open.

FIGURE 24 is a side elevational view of the cart removal arm.

FIGURE 25 is a top view of the cart removal arm.

Certain terminology will be used in the following description for convenience in reference only and will not be limiting. The words upwardly, downwardly, rightwardly and leftwardly will designate directions in the drawings to which reference is made. The words forwardly and rearwardly will refer to directions to the left and to the right, respectively of the cart and counter illustrated in FIGURE 1. The words inwardly and outwardly will refer to directions toward and away from, respectively, the geometric center of the device and designated parts thereof. Said terminology will include words above specifically mentioned, derivatives thereof and words of similar import.

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General description In general, the objects and purposes of the invention have been met by providing an automatic cart unloading system utilizing a wheeled cart which has a substantially inclined bottom wall sloping downwardly toward the front of the cart and a frontwardly opening gate system. The shopping cart is designed to be used with a check stand having a substantially depressed zone therein and open at one end and a convey-or system is disposed in the depressed zone. The counter is further provided with means for holding a shopping cart against the open end of the check stand and with means for opening the gate on the shopping cart. Thus, when a cart is so held and its gate so opened the goods in the shopping cart will gravitationally slide out of the cart onto the conveyor system.

Detailed description An automatic cart unloading system is illustrated in FIGURE 1 and is generally referred to by the reference numeral 10. The system comprises a shopping cart 11 capable of being unloaded automatically and a check stand 12 which is provided with means for opening the gate on the shopping cart.

C heck stand The check stand 12 comprises a longitudinally extending counter 13, having a depression therein, U-shaped in transverse section, which is defined by a pair of vertical side walls 14 and 16 and an interconnecting bottom wall 17. A cash register 18 may be disposed intermediate the ends of the counter. If desired, however, the cash register 18 can be replaced by an electronic scanning device 326 (FIGURE 1) positioned over the conveyor system to automatically scan appropriately marked goods passing thereunder and record same to arrive at a total purchase price.

A pair of conveyors 19 and 21 are disposed within the counter between the side walls 14 and 16. The first conveyor 19 is disposed adjacent the open right end 22 and comprises an endless belt 20 supported on rollers 23 and 24. The upper reach of the belt 20 is preferably positioned so that it runs close to and parallel with the bottom wall 17. It is recognized that the upper reach of the conveyor may be inclined with respect to the bottom wall 17 as desired to facilitate better handling of the goods as will be discussed hereinbelow. The conveyor belt 20 is driven counterclockwise (as seen in FIGURE 1) by any convenient means, here a motor and gear reducer 25 (FIGURE 16) connected by a chain 26 to the roller 24 of said conveyor, which roller is positioned adjacent the right open end 22 of the counter 13.

The conveyor 21 is positioned leftwardly of the conveyor 19 so that the rightwardmost roller 27 thereof is disposed beneath the roller 23 of the conveyor 19. A roller 28 is positioned adjacent the upper edges of the walls 14 and 16 and preferably to the left of the cash register 18. A third roller 29 is disposed adjacent the left end of the counter 13 and slightly below the horizontal plane in which the roller 28 lies. A fourth roller 30 is disposed below and on the left side of the rollers 28 and 29.

An endless conveyor belt 31 is supported by the rollers 27, 28, 29 and 30. Since the roller 28 is positioned above and to the left of the roller 27 (FIGURE 1), the belt 31 is inclined upwardly to the left. A motor and gear reducer 32 (FIGURE 16) is secured by a chain 33 to the shaft of the roller 29 to drive same counterclockwise. It is recognized that the length of the conveyor 21 may be altered to accommodate any other method for moving merchandise past the checker at the check stand.

The gap between the roller 23 of the conveyor 19 and the roller 27 of the conveyor 21 is provided with a device 271 (FIGURE 16) for preventing the escape of merchandise therebetween. The device 271 comprises a rakeoif member 272 secured to the walls 14 and 16 by any conventional means to rake the merchandise from the conveyor 19.

A plate 273 having a width equal to the width of the conveyors 19 and 21 is hingeably secured along its rightward edge to a bulkhead 274 as indicated in FIGURE 16. The leftward edge of the plate 273 is bent upwardly as at 276. The purpose of this construction will become apparent later in the discussion.

The cart and conveyor operating mechanism is advantageously located in one Wall of the check stand, as the wall 14, and attention will now be directed thereto.

A bell crank 34 (FIGURE 4) is pivotally secured to the wall 16, near the bottom and centrally thereof about a pivot pin 35. The bell crank 34 has a foot pedal secured to the leg 36 thereof.

A U-shaped arm 37 having legs 38 and 39 (FIGURE 3) and an interconnecting member 40 is pivotally secured at the upper ends of the legs 38 and 39 to the walls 14 and 16, respectively, adjacent the right end of the check stand 12. A magnet 41 is secured to the interconnecting member 40 and disposed so that the poles thereof are at an angle with respect to the vertical. The purpose of this construction will become apparent later in the discussion.

A cam 42 (FIGURE 4) is secured to the wall 14 and is driven counterclockwise by a motor 43 (shown schematically in FIGURE 20). The cam 42 is secured to the shaft 44 of the motor 43 by a key 45. The outer surface of the cam has a cam surface 46. A pair of parallel walls 47 and 48 are secured to one of the axial faces of the cam 42 to form a second cam surface 49.

A pair of levers 51 and 52 are secured at their upper ends to a common pivot pin 53. The lower ends of the levers 51 and 52 each have a roller secured thereto at points intermediate their respective ends. That is, the roller 54 (FIGURE 5 and 5A) is secured to an intermediate point of the lever 52 and is disposed along the outer cam surface 46. The roller 56 is secured to an intermediate point of the lever 51 and is disposed between the walls 47 and 48 of the cam surface 49.

A pulley 57 (FIGURE 4) is secured to the Wall 14 adjacent the cam 42. A cable 58, which is secured to the lever 51 adjacent its lower end and extends away therefrom in both directions, one end of which passes around the pulley 57, so that both free ends extend to the right end of the check stand 12. Said free ends are attached to opposite end of a chain 59 which latter engages a sprocket 61 secured to the arm 37. If desired, a spring 62 may be inserted in the upper reach 83 of the cable 58 between the chain 59 and the cable 58 to maintain tension therein and for another purpose which will become apparent later on in the discussion.

A bulkhead 66 projects upwardly from the bottom wall 17. A U-shaped lever arm 67 (FIGURE 6) is pivotally secured to the support 66 by eye bolts. That is, the ends 64 and 65 of the lever arm 67 project through the openings of the eye bolts (FIGURE 6) and are pivotable with respect thereto. A latch-engaging plate 68 is secured to the rightward end of the lever arm 67 and projects rightwardly from the end of the check stand 12. In this particular embodiment, the plate 68 is secured to the lever arm 67 so that it extends upwardly at a slight angle with respect to the horizontal as shown in FIGURE 4.

One end of a cable 69 is secured to the lower end of the lever 52. The other end of the cable 69 extends around a pulley 70 to the underside of the plate 68 and is secured thereto by a clamp. A spring 60 is secured to the arm 67 and the bulkhead 66 to bias the arm in an upward position.

A cart holding device 71 is secured to the right end of the counter 13. The cart holding device comprises a housing 72 which has a bottom wall 73, a top wall 74 and a curved vertical wall 75. The vertical wall 75 contains a pair of slots 76 and 77. Each slot 76 and 77 is provided with a stop 78 and 79 (FIGURE 7), respectively.

A pair of arms 81 and 82 are pivotally supported on a pair of pivot pins 83 and 84, respectively. The arms 81 and 82 are provided with brackets 86 and 87, respectively.

The placement of the pivot pins 83 and 84 are such that the arms 81 and 82 swing from the dotted line position shown in FIGURE 7 wherein the arms are butted against the stops 78 and 79, to a position indicated in solid lines wherein said arms 81 and 82 project outwardly through the slots 76 and 77, respectively.

A pair of springs 88 and 89 are secured to the arms 81 and 82. One end of the spring 88 is secured to the bracket 86 on the arm 81 and the other end thereof is secured to a pin 91 preferably positioned on the perpendicular bisector of a line drawn through the axes of the pivot pins 83 and 84. Likewise, one end of the spring 89 is secured to the bracket 87 on the arm 82 and the other end thereof is secured to the pin 91.

A pair of limit switches 93 and 94 are secured to that portion of the vertical wall 75 that extends perpendicularly away from the right end of the counter 13. The limit switch 93 is mounted on the inside left portion of the wall 75, and the limit switch 94 is mounted on the inside right position of the wall 75. The toggle portions 96 of the switches extend through openings 97 in said wall 75.

The ends of a pair of cables 98 and 99 are secured to the arms 81 and 82, respectively, by the brackets 86 and 87 which prevent the cable from sliding axially along the arms 81 and 82. The other ends of both cables 98 and 99 are secured to the leg 101 of the bell crank 34 as illustrated in FIGURE 4. It is recognized that the length of one of the cables, for example cable 99, can be substantially reduced by clamping the shorter end to the remaining cable, for example cable 98, intermediate the ends thereof, the remaining cable being secured to the bell crank 34.

In this embodiment, a further cable 102 (FIGURE 4) is secured to both the remaining cable 98 and the cable 69 by clamps 103 and 104. The purpose of this construction will become apparent later on in the discussion.

Shopping cart FIGURE 8 discloses a shopping cart 11 embodying the shopping cart portion of the invention. The shopping cart has a tubular frame generally indicated at 112. The frame 112 includes a generally forwardly opening (opening to the left as shown in FIGURE 8) U-shaped tubular bottom member 113. The bottom member 113 is generally horizontal and supports an upstanding member 114 at each front corner thereof. The upstanding member 114 is angled forwardly at points spaced above the member 113 and is generally horizontal as indicated at 116. The upstanding member 114 further includes tubular members 117 and 118 which extend upwardly from the forward ends of the horizontal segments 116 and slope forwardly at a slight angle with respect to the vertical as shown in FIGURE 9. A cross member 119 integrally joins the upper ends of the tubular members 117 and 118.

A cross member 120 (FIGURE 10) is secured to the segment 116 along the upper surface thereof for strengthening purposes. The lower free ends of the upstanding member 114 support a pair of wheels 121 mounted for rotation about a fixed axis. A plate 122 is secured to the rearward portion of frame 113 and has a pair of casters 124 secured thereto by bolts 123.

The frame member 113 further supports a second upstanding member 126 at a point spaced rearwardly of the upstanding member 114. More particularly, the second upstanding member 126 includes vertical segments generally indicated at 127. The member 126 is angled rearwardly as at 128 away from the upper ends of the segments 127 at a suitable slope, here approximately 30 degrees, with respect to the horizontal. An integral U- shaped portion 129 is joined to the rearward ends of the segments 128 and lies in a plane which is sloped upwardly and rearwardly at a greater angle than the slope of segments 128. The cross member 130 of the U-shaped member 129 forms the handle by which the cart is pushed by a customer.

The cart 11 is provided with a rigid basket 131 of mesh construction having an open top, a rearward end, closed sides and bottom, and an open front. In this embodiment, the side walls 132 and 133 and the end wall 134 of the basket 131 are vertical, the bottom wall 136 being sloped frontwardly along the sloped segments 128. The top edges of the sides 132 and 133 of the basket are sloped downwardly toward the rear thereof. The side walls 132 and 133 of the cart preferably converge rearwardly at a shallow angle. The convergence of the side walls and the tapered shape thereof facilitate nesting of a series of such carts in a conventional manner by reception of the basket 131 thereof partially within the basket of another disposed rearwardly thereof.

The basket 131 is formed of a series of rods welded together. Referring particularly to FIGURES 11 and 14, the bottom wall 136 comprises a plurality of rods 141 having a perforated sheet of metal 137 secured thereto, the upper surface of which is smooth. The bottom wall extends from the front end of the basket rearwardly to the base of the baby seat 138 (FIGURE 12) adjacent the pivot axis for the back rest 139 thereof.

The baby seat 138 is positioned at the rear of the cart as is illustrated in FIGURES 8 and 12 and comp-rises a pair of rods 142 and 143 which are secured to the rearward edges of the side walls 132 and 133 adjacent the upper edges thereof and extend therebetween. The baby seat further comprises a plurality of parallel and generally L-shapd frames 144, the horizontal legs 145 of which are parallel and horizontal and are secured to a pair of rods 146 and 147 extending between the sloped segments 128 of the upstanding member 126. The vertical legs 148 of the frame 144 which forms the rear wall 134 extend upwardly adjacent and parallel to the rearward ends of the side walls 132 and 133. An interconnecting member 149 joins the upper ends of the vertical legs 148. The rod 147, the legs 148 and the interconnecting member 149 define an opening 151 (FIGURE 8) through which the legs of a child will project. The vertical leg 152 of the central frame 144 (FIGURE 11) preferably bisects the opening 151 so that the legs of the child will straddle said vertical leg. The side walls 132 and 133 form the sides of the baby seat 138.

The baby seat 138 further comprises seat portion 163 (FIGURE 12) including a plurality of rods 164 extending transversely of the legs 145 and secured thereto. A platform 165 is positioned so that it covers the rods 164. The platform is pivotally secured to the rod 147 so that it can be moved from a horizontal position covering the rods 164 to a vertical position indicated in dotted lines in FIGURE 12. A rod 166 interconnects the forward ends of the legs 145 of the frames 144. A backrest 139 comprises a plurality of vertically oriented generally L-shaped rods 167. The angle between the legs 168 and 169 is greater than 90 degrees so that the vertical leg 168 will remain when upright in a slightly forwardly inclined position with respect to the vertical. The generally horizontal leg 169 is looped around the rod 166 to make the rods pivotable with respect to the seat 138. The rearwardmost end of the leg 169 is positioned so that it lies underneath the rod 146 thereby forming a stop against which the leg 169 may bear when the backrest is in the upright position.

A plurality of horizontal rods 171 are secured transversely to the legs 168 of the backrest 139. A plurality of vertically oriented rods 172 are secured to the rods 171 and movable therewith.

The side walls 132 and 133 comprise a generally rectangularly shaped frame 173 (FIGURE 3) having four boundary rods 176, 177, 178 and 179. The lower rod 179 is sloped upwardly toward the rear at the same slope as the segments 128 of the upstanding member 126. A plurality of generally horizontal rods 181 are secured to the inner surface of the frame 173 along the rods 176 and 178. A series of generally parallel and vertical rods 182 are secured to the outer surfaces of the rods 181. The upper and lower ends of the rods 182 are also secured to the legs 177 and 179, respectively. The side 176 of the frame 173 is secured to tubular segments 117. Braces 183 are secured to the tubular members 117 and 118 of the upstanding member 114 and to the sloped segments 128. The side walls 132 and 133 are secured thereto for the purposes of added strength.

The upper part of the upstanding member 114 and the lower frontwardmost edge of the bottom wall define the boundary for an opening 156 (FIGURE 10). A gate 157 is secured to the tubular members 117 and 118 adjacent the upper ends thereof by a rod 158, said rod being pivotable with respect thereto. The gate 157 is suspended from the rod 158 and comprises a U-shaped frame secured to the rod 158 and extends downward therefrom. A plurality of generally vertical rods 159 are secured to the rod 158 and the crossbar 163 of the frame 160. The legs 161 and 162 of the gate converge toward the lowermost portion so that said gate can swing inwardly during nesting and not contact with the side walls 132 and 133. The gate is also permitted to swing forwardly for purposes that will be explained hereinafter.

A locking gate 186 (FIGURE 13) is disposed along the bottom of the opening 156. The gate 186 includes a generally rectangular frame having four sides 187, 188, 189 and 190. A plurality of vertical rods 192 are secured to the upper and lower sides 188 and 190. A plurality of rods 196. (FIGURES 1, 9, 21 and 22) are secured to the lower side member and are positioned so that the forward ends thereof are beneath the lower forwardmo-st edge 193 (FIGURE 13) of the bottom wall 136. The purpose of this construction will become apparent later in the discussion.

The rearward ends of the rods 196 are secured to a torsion bar 197 which holds the rods 196 in engagement with the edge 193 of the bottom wall 136 (FIGURE 13) to keep the gate 186 biased in the upward position. A rod 198 (FIGURES 8 and 9) is disposed intermediate the ends of the rods 196 and is secured thereto.

A U-shaped frame 194 (FIGURES 10, 11 and 13) is centrally disposed and secured to the lower side member 190 of the gate 186 to define an opening 191.

The latch 201 (FIGURES 11 and 21) is generally U- shaped. The legs 202 and 203 (FIGURE 11) are secured to one of the rods 141 (FIGURE 21) and are pivotable with respect thereto. The latch 201 further comprises a horizontal section 204 forming a ledge on which the rod 198 resets to keep the locking gate closed. The lower portion 206 of the latch extends downwardly from the front edge of the ledge.

Electrical system The electrical system 208 (FIGURE 20) is embodied within a housing 209 and comprises a pair of input conductors 211 and 212 connected to a source of electrical power. A pilot light 213 for indicating power on and a receptacle 214 are connected across the conductors 211 and 212. Both the pilot light 213 and the receptacle 214 are mounted on the front face of the housing 209. A conductor 216 is connected to one side of a pair of relay coils 217 and 218 as well as to one side of the conveyor drive motors 25 and 32 and the cam drive motor 43. A conductor 219 connects the other sides of the relay coils 217 and 218 to one ,side of a manually operated switch 221. A conductor 222 connects the other side of the switch 221 to the conductor 212. One side of the contact 223 of the relay 217 is connected by a conductor 224 to the other side of the motor 25. The other side of the contact 223 is connected to the line 222 by a conductor 226. Likewise, one side of the contact 227 is connected to the other side of the second conveyor motor 32 by a line 228. The other side of the contact 227 is connected to the line 222 by a conductor 229.

A conductor 231 interconnects the line 216 and one side of the relay coils 232 and 233. The other side of the relay coil 232 is connected to one side of one cart wheel interlock switch 94 by a conductor 234. A conductor 236 connects the other side of the switch 94 to one side of the other cart wheel interlock switch 93. A conductor 237 interconnects the other side of the switch 93 to a gate opening switch 238. The other side of the switch 238 is connected by a conductor 239 to one side of a normally closed limit switch 241. The other side of the switch 241 is connected to both .the line 212 by a conductor 242 and one side of a three pole limit switch 243. The middle pole of the switch 243 is connected by a conductor 244 to one side of a normally open gate closing switch 246. The other side of the switch 246 is connected by a conductor 247 to the line 212.

The relay coil 232 activates the normally open contacts 251 and 252. One terminal of the contact 251 is connected by a conductor 253 to the line 224. The other terminal of the contact 251 is connected by a conductor 254 to the line 222.

One terminal of the contact 252 is connected by a conductor 256 to the line 222. The other terminal is connected by a conductor 257 to one of the normally open terminals of the contacts 258 which is activated by the relay coil 233, said terminal also being connected, by a conductor 259 to the other side of the cam drive motor 43. The other terminal of the contact 258 is connected by a conductor 261 to the line 222. One terminal of the contact 262, also activated by the relay coil 233, is connected by a conductor 263 to the third pole of the switch 243. A conductor 264 connects the other terminal of the contact 262 to a normally closed limit switch 266. The other terminal of the contact 262 is connected by conductor 267 to the line 212.

Cart removal arm If desired, the check stand 12 may be provided with a cart removal device 281 (FIGURES 1 and 24) for removing the cart 11 from the open end of the counter 13. The cart removal device 281 is driven by an arm 282 (dotted lines in FIGURES and 5A) secured to the cam drive shaft 44 of the motor 43. One end of a cable 283 (FIGURE 4) is secured to the free end of the arm 282. The other end of the cable 283 is secured to a chain 284 which is in engagement with a gear 286 (FIGURE 24) connected to the shaft 287 about which the cart removal device 281 rotates. A spring 288 is fastened to the free end of the chain 284. The other end of the spring 288 is secured to the wall 14. The device further comprises an arm 289 (FIGURE 24) which extends outwardly from the shaft 287 and includes apparatus 291 for engaging a cart at the end of the counter 13. This structure is the subject of US. application Ser. No. 609,930 and therefore will not be discussed further herein.

Conveyor belt If desired, the conveyor belt 31 of the conveyor 21 (FIGURE 16) can be equipped with a plurality of cleats 301, the heights of which vary from a position flush with the surface of the belt 31 (dotted lines in FIGURE 18) to an elevated position illustrated in solid lines in FIG- URE 18. The varying heights of the cleats is accomplished by providing a pair of parallel tracks 302 and 303 (FIGURE 17) extending along the facing surfaces of the lower part of the Walls 14 and 16 of the counter 13. The tracks 302 and 303 are defined by recesses 304 and 306, respectively, in the lower portions of the walls 14 and 16. The lower surface of the recesses 304 and 306 is inclined upwardly as at 307 toward the left (FIGURE 16) to a level as at 308 that is above the surface of the conveyor. The elevated level 308 extends parallel with the slope of belt 31. The overhanging portions 309 and 310 above the recesses 304 and 306, respectively, protect the tracks 302 and 303 and keep merchandise from blocking same.

The lower surface 305 of the recesses 304 and 306 assumes a different slope at the left upper end of the conveyor 21 (FIGURE 16), said slope being the same as the downward slope existing on the belt 31 between the rollers 28 and 29. The lower surface 305 of the recesses 304 and 306 in this area is flush with the surface 311 that the belt 31 rests on and illustrated in FIGURE 19.

The cleats 301 comprises a flap 312 (FIGURE 18) which is secured to the belt 31 along one edge 315 thereof. The remaining portion of said flap is pivotable about the secured edge. The outer free edge 313 of the flap 312 comprises a loop 314 through which a shaft 316 is insertable. The ends of the shaft 316 are provided with rollers 317 and 318 which ride on the lower surface of the recesses 304 and 306, respectively.

Carpeting 319 is secured to the surface of the belt 31 and the flap 312 to provide improved traction for merchandise on the inclined portions of the conveyor 21 to prevent same from slipping on the belt.

Operation Although the operation of the system embodying the invention has been indicated somewhat above, said operation will be described in detail hereinbelow to assure a more complete understanding of the invention.

Referring to FIGURES 21, 22 and 23, a shopping cart is pushed forwardly (leftwardly) so that the wheels 121 are positioned on opposite sides of the housing 72 of the cart holding device 71. The latch-engaging plate 68 is guided into the opening 191 in the lower portion of the gate 186.

When the cart is pushed as far forwardly as it will go against the open end of the counter 13, the latch-engaging plate 68 strikes the lower portion 206 of the latch 201 and swings it rearwardly or counterclockwise as viewed in FIGURE 22 so that the ledge 204 is moved rearwardly of the rod 198. Since the torsion bar 197 keeps the gate 186 in the elevated position, the tripping of the latch 201 will not of itself cause the gate 186 to drop. Thus, there is no chance of prematurely permitting the gate 157 to swing forwardly and cause the merchandise within the cart 11 to be deposited accidentally on the conveyor 19. Instead, the gate 157 is held closed until the proper com mand is given by the checker to open the gate.

The gate opening process cannot be accomplished without first making sure the cart 11 is held snugly against the open end of the counter 13. This is accomplished by the checker by depressing the foot pedal on the bell crank 34. This causes the cable 98 secured to the bell crank 34 to be pulled leftwardly (FIGURES 4 and 7).

The arms 81 and 82 will be drawn leftwardly from their dotted line positions to their solid line positions in FIG- URE 6. In their solid line positions, the arms 81 and 82 extend outwardly through their respective slots 76 and 77, and engage the lower free ends of the upstanding member 114 above the point of securement to the Wheels 121. When the cart is held firmly against the open end 22 of the counter 13, the limit switches 93 and 94 are both closed due to the engagement of the lower free ends of the upstanding member 114 with the toggles 96. The limit switches perform a safety function preventing the cart from being accidentally opened before the command from the checker is given. At the same time the end gate 157 of the cart is pushed against the magnet 41, pushing same back slightly and stretching the spring 62.

After the cart 11 is firmly secured to the open end 22 of the counter 13 and the limit switches 93 and 94 are closed, the checker can give the command to open the gate 157. This is accomplished by closing the contacts of the gate opening switch 238. This causes the relay coil 232 to become energized thereby closing the contacts 251 and 252. The closing of contacts 252 causes the cam drive motor 43 to be energized thereby causing the cam 42 to rotate counterclockwise as viewed in FIGURES 4, and 5A. The conveyor 19 is started by a closing of the contacts 251. The conveyor 19 is driven by a motor 25 connected thereto by a chain 26.

Rotation of the cam 42 causes the rollers 54 and 56 to roll on their cam surfaces 46 and 49, respectively. The starting position for the rollers 54 and 56 and levers 51 and 52 is illustrated in FIGURE 5. Pivotal movement of the lever 52 in response to the roller 54 acts through its cable 69 to pull the latch-engaging plate 68 downwardly to thereby open the bottom gate 186 which in turn releases the gate 157. Immediately thereafter, the arm 37 will respond to movements of the lever 51 acting through the cable 58 to pivot clockwise and open said gate 157. The lever 52 and roller 54 pivots clockwise at a more rapid rate than the lever 51 and roller 56. Thus, the cable 69 is pulled leftwardly at a more rapid rate than the cable 58 so that the gate 186 will be drawn downwardly by the latch-engaging plate 68 well in advance of the gate 157 being pulled forwardly of the cart 11 by the arm 37 and magnet 41.

When the cam 42 has reached the position illustrated in FIGURE 5A, the limit switches 241 and 243 (FIG- URE are momentarily opened interrupting the power to the relay coil 232 causing contacts 252 to open, stopping the cam drive motor. When the cam 42 is in this position, the gate 157 is held open by the arm 37 and the magnet 41 thereon and the gate 186 is held in a lowered position by the plate 68 as illustrated in FIG- URE 22. Likewise, the contacts 251 are opened so that the conveyor 19 is stopped. The conveyor 19 is designed to run during the gate opening process to draw the merchandise out of the cart as a unit to thereby prevent a tumbling thereof and possible damage thereto.

The depression of the foot pedal at the beginning of the gate opening process also causes the cable 102 (FIG- URE 4) to become slack. However, when the cam 42 reaches the position illustrated in FIGURE 5A, it will have caused cable 69 to move leftwardly thereby again tightening the cable 102. Thus, the checker does not have to keep her foot on the foot pedal during the whole unloading process. Once, the gate is open, she can remove her foot from the foot pedal because the tension on the cables 69 and 102 will keep the arms 81 and 82 (FIG- URE 6) in their extended positions.

When the checker is ready to start checking the goods, a foot pedal or hip operated switch 221 is closed to energize the relay coils 217 and 218 to close contacts 223 and 227 resulting in the conveyor motors and 32 becoming energized. The first conveyor 19 will move the goods from the cart toward the second conveyor 21, said goods moving in a relatively coherent mass and hence with a minimum of tumbling and tendency to damage. The second conveyor 21 moves at a faster speed than the conveyor 19 so that the goods being transferred from the conveyor 19 to the conveyor 21 will be separated automatically thus making it easier for the checker to check the merchandise. The slope of the bottom wall 136 is such that the merchandise within the cart will slide down the bottom wall 136 under the pull of gravity onto the conveyor 19 until the cart 11 is empty.

The slope of the bottom wall as discussed herein above is illustrated as being approximately degress to the horizontal, which angle was found to be most advantageous. However, one critical feature of this invention is the relationship or angle between the bottom 136 of the cart 11 and the upper reach of the conveyor 19. The angle a (FIGURE 23) between the bottom of the cart 11 and the upper reach of the conveyor 19 illustrated in FIGURES 21-23 is approximately 150 degrees. This angle permits the goods in the cart to slide downwardly and outwardly therefrom onto the conveyor 19 with a minimum of tumbling. A a result, the goods will move from said cart in a relatively coherent mass. It is recognized that the angle relationship between the cart and the conveyor 19 can be varied as desired. However, starting with the necessity of having the bottom of the cart steep enough to assure rapid outflow of the goods in response to gravity yet not so steep as to elfect an excessive falling thereof (optimum at about 30 degrees as above mentioned), the angle a must be small enough that the conveyor 19 essentially stops the goods, which slide out of the cart, against further sliding and yet large,

enough that the conveyor 19 essentially draws the goods away from the cart to permit further sliding thereof out of the cart. Particularly if the angle a is too large, the goods will tend to tumble onto the conveyor; if the angle is too small, the goods being moved on the conveyor will tend to interfere, and tumble, with the goods exiting from the cart. While the precise angle is, of course, somewhat indefinite, due to the variable nature of the goods involved, it appears that with a cart bottom at 30 degrees to the horizontal, the optimum angle is about degrees and the effective range is about 135 degrees to degrees. Thus, the cart bottom would have an optimum slope in the range of 20 degrees to 45 degrees to the horizontal.

The cleats 301 become elevated on the sloping part of the conveyor 21 between the rollers 27 and 28. The cleats prevent the merchandise on the conveyor from rolling, such 'as canned goods, or sliding. A guard device 271 is used to prevent merchandise from being lost in the gap between the two conveyors. The plate 273 is permitted to move up and down due to its hinge connection to the bulkhead 274. The plate 273 is caused to move upwardly by the rising cleats 301 (FIGURE 16) which are caused to rise due to the rollers 317 and 318 on the inclined surface 307. When the cleat 301 has passed the bent edge 276, the plate 273 is permitted to drop down due to its own weight. The bent edge 276 stops any merchandise tending to fall toward the right between the two conveyors.

The cleats 301 at the upper left part of the conveyor 21 follow the roller tracks 302 and 303 which drop below the level of the conveyor belt of the left of the roller 28 (FIGURES l6 and 19). Hence, in such portion of the conveyor said cleats may become flush with the belt. This permits the belt to slide under the goods if the goods should accumulate faster than the sacker removes them. Thus, there can be no damage done to the merchandise.-

Since the cam 42 has the conductors 244 and 263 (FIG- URE 20) connected together through the third terminal of the switch 243 when the gate 157 is fully opened, the checker is permitted to close the gate after the merchandise has been emptied from the cart 11 because the gate closing switch 246 is connected to the relay coil 233. That is, the checker can push the close gate switch 246 to energize the relay coil 233 closing the contacts 258 and 262. The contacts 258 energize the cam motor 43 to move the arm 37 counterclockwise to close the gate 157. The contact 262 holds the gate close circuit energized since the movement of the cam 42 will cause the conductors 244 and 263 to open when it moves away from the limit switch 243. When the cam has rotated to the starting position illustrated in FIGURE 5, a limit switch 266 (FIGURE 20) will be activated breaking the gate close circuit to stop the cam drive motor 43 and the cam 42. At this time, however, the arm 37 will have been swung clockwise (FIGURE 4) far enough to close the gate 157. The cam 42 also will have permitted the cable 69 to have become slack to allow the springs 60 to return the arm 67 and plate 68 to the starting position shown in FIGURE 22. Thus, the gate 186 is permitted to rise to the starting position, that is, a position forward of the lower portion of the gate 157 whereby the gate 157 is held by the gate 186 in its locked closed position.

Simultaneously therewith, the cable 102 will become slack because the cable 69 is moved rightwardly due to the rotation of the cam 42 and the counterclockwise pivotal movement of the lever 52 and roller 54 moving rightwardly. Thus, the arms 81 and 82 are retracted by the springs 88 and 89, respectively, to the dotted line positions indicated in FIGURE 6. The springs also pull the foot pedal back. Therefore, the cart may be removed from the end of the counter 13.

When the gate 157 has been swung to its closed position, the arm 37 swings the gate 157 rearwardly far enough, and thereby rotates around its own pivot points sufficiently, that the upper pole 321 on the magnet 41 is similarly rotated and thereby pulled away from the gate as shown in FIGURE 15. Thus, the cart may be easily removed from the end of the counter 13 without having to overcome the force of the magnet holding the cart to the end of the counter.

When the gate 186 is raised to its uppermost position and the cart pulled away from the end of the counter, the latch 201 is permitted to swing clockwise (FIGURE 9) under the pull of gravity when the latch-engaging plate is removed from the opening 191. The ledge 204 slides under the stationary rod 198 On the gate 186 to keep same locked in the closed position. The upward urging of the gate 186 is stopped by the rods 1% thereon contacting the rod 193 (FIGURE 13).

The back rest 139 of the baby seat 138 is pivotable about the rod 166 to a position indicated in dotted lines in FIGURE 12. The plastic cover 165 is pivotable about the rod 147 to a position indicated in dotted lines in FIG- URE 12. The cover 165 performs the function of blocking the leg openings 151 to form a receptacle into which perishable merchandise may be put. These may, if desired by the customer, be removed by hand to preventing spilling, bruising, etc.

Although a particular preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed above in detail for illustrative purposes, it will be recognized that variations or modifications of such disclosure, which come within the scope of the appended claims, are fully contemplated.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A nestable shopping cart construction, comprising:

frame means supported on first and second wheel means at first and second ends thereof, respectively, and a basket having a bottom wall, first end wall means and sidewalls supported on said frame means, said first end wall means being pivotally secured to said frame means at said first end for movement into and out of said basket;

first edge means of said bottom wall at said first end being closely adjacent said first wheel means and second edge means at said second end being substantially spaced from said second wheel means so that said bottom wall slopes downwardly with respect to a plane through the axes of said wheel means and toward said first end;

first latch means movable between first and second positions, said first latch means in said first position blocking the outward movement of said first end wall means while at the same time allowing said first end wall means to pivot inwardly for nesting purposes;

second latch means movable between first and second latch positions and releasably engageable with said first latch means when in said first latch position to hold said first latch means in its said first position; whereby movement of said second latch means out of said first latch position will release said first latch means to permit movement of said first latch means out of its said first position and thereby permit an outward movement of said first end wall means.

2. The nestable shopping cart defined in claim 1, wherein said bottom wall is inclined at an angle of between about 20 and about 45 degrees to said plane through the axes of said wheel means.

3. The nestable shopping cart defined in claim 1, wherein said bottom wall is inclined at an angle of about 30 degrees to said plane through the axes of said wheel means.

4. A nestable shopping cart defined in claim 1 including a baby seat having a first panel defining a seat rigidly secured to said frame means adjacent said second end of said cart and a second panel comprising backrest pivotally attached to said seat and foldable toward said second end 5. A nestable shopping cart defined in claim 1, wherein said sidewalls of said basket converge toward said second end to define a narrow end at said second end and to define a wide end at said first end; and

wherein said first end wall means is mounted across said wide end and comprising an openable gate which is hingeably secured about a horizontal axis to said frame means for swinging both inwardl and outwardly; and

wherein said bottom wall slopes downwardly toward said wide end and said gate.

'6. The nestable shopping cart defined in claim 1, wherein said first latch means is pivotally secured to said frame means about a horizontal axis, said first latch means normally blocking the outward movement of said first end wall means while at the same time allowing said first end wall to pivot inwardly for nesting purposes.

7. The nestable shopping cart defined in claim 1, wherein said second latch means is pivotally secured to said bottom wall and pivotable between said first and second latch positions and releasably engageable with said first latch means when .in its said first latch position and said first latch means is in its said first position, whereby a movement of said second latch means from said first latch position to said second latch position will release said second latch means from said first latch means and permit a movement of said first latch means out of said blocking position to permit an outward movement of said first end wall means.

8. The nestable shopping cart defined in claim 1, wherein said first end wall means and said bottom wall define an acute angle.

9. The nestable shopping cart defined in claim 8, wherein said first end wall means is pivotally secured to said frame means about a horizontal axis above said bottom wall; and

wherein said first end wall means extends downwardly from said horizontal axis and has a vertical extent less than the perpendicular distance between said horizontal axis and said bottom wall to define a gap therebetween; and

wherein said first latch means defines a gate which extends across said gap.

10. A nestable shopping cart construction comprising:

frame means supported on first and second wheel means at first and second ends thereof and a basket having a bottom, first end wall and sidewalls supported on said frame means;

first edge means of said bottom wall at said first end being closely adjacent said first wheel means and second edge means at said second end being substantially spaced from said second wheel means so that said bottom wall slopes downwardly toward said first end;

a baby seat construction having a first panel defining a seat rigidly secured to said frame means adjacent said end of said cart and a second panel comprising a backrest pivotally attached to said seat and foldable toward said second end;

locking means secured to said frame means for preventing said first end wall from pivoting outwardl while at the same time and without unlocking said locking means permitting said first end wall to pivot inwardly for nesting purposes, said locking means including projection means pivotally secured to said frame means for normally blocking the outward movement of said first end wall while at the same time allowing said first end wall to pivot inwardly for nesting purposes; and

latch means pivotally secured to said bottom wall and pivotal between first and second latch positions, same being releasably engageable with said projection means when said latch is in its said first position and said projection means is in its blocking position;

whereby movement of said latch means from said first latch position to said second latch position will release same from said projection means whereby to permit movement of said projecting means out of said blocking position to unlock said locking means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,813,725 11/1957 Hoedinghaus 28033.99

16 6/1962 Stanley 280--33.99 12/1953 Goldman 280-3399 5/1962 Sharaway 186-1 9/1962 Swanson 28033.99 12/1963 Thompson 186-1 2/1967 La Chance 1861 FOREIGN PATENTS 2/ 1953 Great Britain.

EVON C. BLUNK, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

